R-1 Visa for Religious Workers: Eligibility, Stay, and Steps

The R-1 is for people coming to the US temporarily to work as:

• A minister: someone authorized by the denomination to conduct worship and perform other duties usually done by clergy.
• A person in a religious vocation: a lifelong commitment, such as a nun, monk, or religious brother or sister.
• A person in a religious occupation: a job mainly about carrying out the denomination's religious creed and beliefs, such as a religious instructor, cantor, or missionary. Administrative and support jobs, such as janitors, fundraisers, or general office staff, don't qualify.

The employer must be a nonprofit religious organization in the US, an organization covered by a group tax exemption, or a nonprofit affiliated with a religious denomination.

For short visits, such as preaching for a few weeks, a B-1 visitor visa may be enough in some cases.

The worker must:

• Have been a member of the same religious denomination as the US employer for at least 2 years immediately before the petition is filed.
• Be coming to work at least part-time, meaning an average of at least 20 hours a week.
• Be qualified for the job. Ministers need proof of ordination or its equivalent and any theological education the denomination requires.

The US organization must:

• Prove its tax-exempt status with an IRS determination letter, or a group exemption letter plus proof of coverage.
• Show how it will pay the worker, whether through salary, in-kind support like room and board, or an established missionary program where the worker is self-supporting.
• Allow a USCIS site inspection, which can happen before or after approval.

An organization that believes a requirement burdens its religious exercise can ask for an exemption under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

• Work only for the organization that filed the petition, in the religious role described.
• Move between locations within the same organization if the petition covers them. A move that materially changes the job may need an amended petition first.
• Change employers only after the new organization files a new Form I-129 and attestation. The employer must tell USCIS within 14 days if your employment ends or changes.
• Travel in and out of the US with a valid visa and approval notice.

R-1 status is tied to the job. If the work stops, talk to the organization and an immigration lawyer quickly about your options.

Only time physically spent in the US in R-1 status counts toward the 5 years. The limit does not apply to workers whose US work is seasonal or intermittent, lasts 6 months a year or less, or who live abroad and commute to part-time work.

2026 change: Under a DHS interim final rule published on January 16, 2026, workers who reach the 5-year limit must still leave the US, but they no longer have to stay outside for one full year before returning in R-1 status. A new petition can even be filed before they leave. They then re-enter with a new approval and, if needed, a new visa.

Your spouse and unmarried children under 21 can come in R-2 status. R-2 family members:

• Cannot work.
• Can study at school or university.
• Get the same length of stay as you.

• USCIS petition (Form I-129): the standard fee is $1,015, but nonprofit religious organizations pay the reduced $510 fee and $0 Asylum Program Fee, as of September 2026. Optional premium processing for R petitions costs $1,780 (since March 1, 2026). See the USCIS fee schedule.
• Visa application fee: $205 for petition-based visas as of September 2026. Canadian citizens don't need a visa.
• Visa integrity fee: A $250 visa integrity fee, created by a 2025 law, is charged when a visa is issued. As of September 2026, consulates have rolled it out unevenly, so check your embassy's fee page.

Check the State Department fee page before applying.

R-1 workers must intend to leave when their stay ends, but USCIS can't deny an R-1 only because a green card petition was filed. The usual green card route is the special immigrant religious worker category in EB-4, filed on Form I-360.

Keep in mind:

• EB-4 has long waits for many countries. Check the visa bulletin and priority dates.
• The non-minister part of the religious worker category must be renewed by Congress from time to time. Check the USCIS EB-4 page for its current status before relying on it.
• Religious workers who also qualify in other categories, such as EB-2, can use those.

• Less than 2 years of membership in the same denomination.
• The job is administrative or secular, not religious.
• The organization can't prove tax-exempt status or how it will pay the worker.
• A failed or incomplete site inspection.
• Fewer than 20 hours of work a week.
• At the consulate: past immigration violations or security concerns. See visa denials and waivers.

Travel ban. Proclamation 10998 took effect on January 1, 2026, and has no end date. It limits visas for nationals of 39 countries: for 19 countries it suspends almost all visas, and for the other 20 it suspends immigrant visas plus B, F, M, and J visas. USCIS is also holding many pending cases from these countries for extra review. Check Travel ban status before you pay fees or book travel.